ensign



O. A. BNSIGN. India. Rubber Boot.

H No. 231,294. Patented Aug. 17, 1880.

N-FE'I'ERS. FHOTO UTHOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON. D C.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

YEARS METALLIC RUBBER SHOE COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

INDIA-RUBBER BOOT.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 231,294, dated August 17, 1880.

Application filed May 6. 1880. (Model.)

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHAS. A. ENsIGN, of Naugatuck, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented a new Im- 5 provement in India-Rubber Boots; and 1 do hereby declare the following, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings and the letters of reference marked thereon, to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, and which said drawings constitute part of this specification, and represent, in

Figure 1, side view; Fig. 2, top view of leg; Fig. 3, vertical section of the upper part of the leg, showing the folded gusset; Fig. 4, top view, showing the leg opened.

This invention relates to an improvement in india-rubber or water-proof boots, the object being to construct the leg at the top so as to make a close fit to prevent snow from entering, and also to allow the mouth of the leg to expand for convenience in putting on or taking ofi' the boot; and the invention consists in the construction as hereinafter described, and particularly recited in the claims.

The general outline of the boot does not differ essentially from that of boots of similar construction.

The leg is preferably made from felt A outside, and with felt lining B inside, with the rubber gum between, the foot covered by an upper of rubber.

In the lining C of the leg, at the top, a goreshaped piece is cut out, as a b d, and a vertical slit made in the outside, as from 6 to c, Fig. 1, and which corresponds substantially to the line b d in the lining. A gore-shaped piece is introduced, one edge attached to one edge of the slit e and the other edge to the opposite edge of the slit, and of sufficient extent atthe top to permit the leg to be expanded, as seen in broken lines, Fig. 2, but so as to double and fold back into the space made by the gore-shaped cut a b d-as seen at D, Fig. 3, this space in the lining permitting it to lie 5 flush, or substantially so, with the inner surface of the lining. To one edge of the outer Tie, which shall extend slit, 6 e, a strap, E, is attached, and a buckle, F, provided, by which to secure the leg in its closed condition. This is preferably attached to the front edge of the slit, and so as to buckle o backward, as seen in Fig. 1.

The gusset should extend down about midway of the length of the leg. By this construction the leg may be made so small at the top as to be drawn closely around the leg of the wearer, and yet opened, so as to permit the boot to be easily put on or taken off.

The gusset is best made by using a thin fabacross the space out from the inside, and so as to form a thin lining for the-outside portion, and thence continued to the opposite edge of the slit for the lining of the gore; then a second piece of fabric is applied to the outside, covering the gusset portion, and continued forms the lining of the strap, as seen in Fig. 4..

I do not broadly claim a boot with an exansible leg, as such, I am aware, is not new.

What I do claim is- 1. In an india-rubber boot, a vertical slit from the top downward, a gore-shaped piece cut from the lining, the said slit forming one side of such cut, and a gusset attached by one edge to one edge of the slit and by the other edge to the opposite edge of the slit, and folded to occupy the space from which the lining is cut, substantially as described.

2. In an india-rubber boot, a vertical slit from the top downward, a gore-shaped piece cut from the lining, the said slit forming one side of such cut, and a gusset attached by one edge to one edge of the slit and by the other edge to the opposite edge of the slit, and folded to occupy the space from which the lining is cut, with the strap E outside attached to one edge of the slit and a securing device upon the opposite side, substantially as described.

CHAS. A. ENSIGN. Witnesses:

GEo. A. LEWIS, E. B. GOODYEAR. 

